{"id":11415,"date":"2022-06-28T01:52:50","date_gmt":"2022-06-28T01:52:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.booksofall.com\/es\/?post_type=product&p=11415"},"modified":"2022-06-28T02:01:58","modified_gmt":"2022-06-28T02:01:58","slug":"writing-fabulous-features","status":"publish","type":"product","link":"https:\/\/www.booksofall.com\/es\/writing-fabulous-features\/","title":{"rendered":"Writing Fabulous Features"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u201cStart writing, no matter what. The water does not flow until the faucet is turned on.\u201d Louis L\u2019Amour<\/em><\/h4>\n

\u201cWho can write features? The short answer is, \u201cAnyone who writes.\u201d I don\u2019t mean you have to be on the staff of a publication or newspaper to exchange writing for money. Really, all you need is creativity<\/a>, tenacity and the desire and ability to see stories in every person you meet and each situation you experience. Sounds simple, right? I have since 2004 taught feature writing at Ohio State University \u2014 first as an adjunct professor while I was the editor of Hoof Beats magazine, and now as an associate professor of clinical communication.<\/p>\n

One reason the class is often full is that students are often seeking real-world journalism experiences.<\/a> In this class, students come up with story ideas, pitch them to an editor (me), research, report and write them, and then pitch them for publication. Finding feature success begins with thinking and seeing the world as would a writer.<\/p>\n

Let\u2019s start with these four tips:<\/strong><\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Think like a reader reader:<\/strong> Articles are not written for writers, editors or publishers \u2014 or professors. They are written for readers. To determine whether an idea is worth writing, think like the reader you wish to serve. What would you find compelling or interesting? What questions would you have that this article could answer?<\/li>\n
  2. Be a good reader reader:<\/strong> This is perhaps the most important advice for prospective writers and the one that seems the most difficult to fulfill. You have to see writing \u2014good, bad, mediocre \u2014 in order to recognize the same traits in yourself. Many young writers skip this step and immediately start trying to put sentences together. Good writing, however, is developed, not inherent. Let others be a guide.<\/li>\n
  3. Look for story ideas everywhere everywhere:<\/strong> To find those ideas, you have to train your mind to look for them \u2014 in every store, at every party, every day on your way to work, in every experience.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    The key to finding features is to understand what gives an idea \u201cfeature value,\u201d basically, why people would care enough to read a story about this topic.<\/p>\n

    \u201cFinding the right story is 70% of it; the other 30% of it is telling it,\u201d Tom Reed of The Athletic said. \u201cI think it is coming up with the idea and hopefully one which hasn\u2019t been told or hasn\u2019t been told in the way you want to tell it. Once you find the idea, then everything falls into place.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

    He cited an example from 2009 when, as a sports reporter for The Columbus Dispatch, he approached an Ohio State staff member about any interesting stories on the track and field team. The response: Did he know that a shot-put thrower had, four years earlier, inadvertently killed a judge in a track meet at California? \u201cIt was an older gentleman who was hard of hearing and \u2026 walked across the course and he didn\u2019t know the event was going on,\u201d Reed said. \u201cI ended up getting ahold of both families. It took [the student-athlete] years to get back into it. He felt horrible killing somebody, even though it wasn\u2019t his fault, and he really struggled with that.<\/p>\n

    \u201cSo finding the story, again, I\u2019d say is 70% of the battle.\u201d In addition to finding the idea, a story has \u201clegs,\u201d \u201cteeth\u201d or both, according to Mitch Hooper of (614) media group. \u201cLegs\u201d mean the story is functional and can walk on its own \u2014 its feature value is clear and evident. Having LEARNING TO WRITE NON-FICTION WITH FLAIR 10 \u201cteeth\u201d means it has an interesting angle or relevance as to why it\u2019s being written about now. \u201cA lot of the times it\u2019s kind of looking for these angles that are unique or interesting, and maybe it hasn\u2019t been tapped into before or has been told yet in this way,\u201d Hooper said. \u201cI think that\u2019s ultimately our job a lot of the times, to be the gatekeeper for what story deserves to be told and what story doesn\u2019t deserve to be told. That can be kind of hard but I think for the most part our job is to find these untold stories, not necessarily rehash something that\u2019s been told over and over again.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"